9 Lessons Your Parents Taught You About Content Marketing Funnel

A Content Marketing Funnel Explained

A content marketing funnel is a method to let potential customers learn more about your company, find solutions to their problems and become confident in purchasing from you. Different kinds of content work best for every stage of the funnel.

At the top of the funnel, infographics, videos, and checklists attract attention, create leads, and keep readers entertained. Gated content, such as templates and guides, also works well at this stage.

Awareness

At this point, consumers are simply aware of your brand and the solutions you provide. At this point the content you create is intended to provide answers and educate prospects about the issues your solution solves and how it differs from competitors.

To understand your content gaps for this stage, consider the different types of keywords your audience uses to browse online. Through keyword research, you can figure the terms your target audience is searching for that indicate the need for your product or service. This information can be used to create an editorial calendar and figure out the types of content that focus on those keywords.

Additionally creating content for this stage of the funnel helps you build your brand's affinity with customers. If your customers are more informed about your brand, they'll have more faith in your ability to solve their issues. This leads to higher conversion rates for newsletter signups and purchases, as well as clickthroughs on your website.

A well-executed strategy for content will assist in closing this conversion gap. For instance, if discover that the majority of your content is targeted at educating, but not enough is influencing buyers towards a purchase decision, you could increase your advertising budget to target middle-funnel keywords.

Another way to increase your bottom-of-funnel conversion is through social media. Social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook allow you to interact directly with your customers, providing you an opportunity to showcase your customer service. This can range from retweeting reviews to promoting exclusive offers.

You can also leverage existing content to lure buyers into the bottom-of-funnel like blog posts or case studies. For example, if you write a blog post explaining why your product is better than the competition's, you can share it on social media and invite readers to subscribe to your mailing list for more information. You can also encourage conversions at this point by asking users to tag you on their social media posts after they have used your product. This will motivate others to do the same and help spread the word about your brand.

Inquiry

A well-planned content strategy should comprise a variety of content types that draw customers in each stage of the funnel. For instance campaigns to promote brand awareness could include ads, but they should also feature blogs and infographics that address common concerns and objections. The content can then be shared via social media and emails to drive organic traffic.

As consumers move through the decision-making process, they begin looking for specific features in a product which will assist them in making a purchase decision. This is the perfect time to create FAQ pages. Utilize tools for keyword research, such as Ubersuggest or search for popular hashtags in your industry to find questions that your audience asks. Then, you can write answers to these questions and place them on your content funnel map.

At this point it is crucial to present an unambiguous value proposition that demonstrates to prospective customers how your product or service will solve their issue and make them more money. The content should also emphasize your brand's uniqueness when compared to your competitors.

It's a fairly simple step to measure, as consumers are making a decision whether or not to purchase. To see if you're getting the job accomplished, look for metrics such as conversion rate or the number of payments made and click-through rates.

As consumers reach the point of advocacy your brand grows more and more important to them. They will be sharing your content with others because they are so passionate about it. This is an effective method of increasing your reach. But you'll need to concentrate on creating content that inspires people to share, instead of focusing solely on engagement metrics. Use Sprout Social, for example to track the number of shares on social media as a result of your content marketing efforts. This will give you a precise picture of the impact you have.

Decision

At the decision stage the buyers are looking for content that confirms the purchase and explains how to utilize the product. At this point, they want to know that your solution will resolve their problem and make the investment worth it. At this stage, high-quality content, such as product guides as well as case study videos and customer success stories are crucial. Your customers want to ask questions and get answers from your support staff. It's a great way to delight your customers and inspire them to share their experiences.

At this stage you're hoping that your customer will become a brand ambassador and will recommend your product to their colleagues and friends. To convert these advocates into rave customers, you'll have to provide them with valuable content that helps them make the most of your product or service. You can do this by creating personalized newsletters, tutorial video, free trial offers and loyalty programs.

After your audience has changed from leads to paying customers It's time to concentrate on retention. The standard funnel for content marketing models tend to view revenue as the end of the journey, however it is important to remember that consumers will continue to engage with brands after they've made a purchase. It is crucial to redefine the funnel as a dynamic model that includes revenue, not a static model.

The conventional content marketing funnels are helpful in creating your strategy however they do not consider the complexity of the buyer's journey. Reimagining the content marketing funnel as a circular model can assist you in creating an integrated strategy. You can create content that is engaging your audience and drives conversions by planning for each step of the process. Then, you can use the information from these conversions to enhance your strategy and make sure that it is working effectively. Are you ready to see how this approach will benefit your company? Contact us today to request a free content marketing playbook.

Retention

A funnel for content marketing can be a valuable tool for helping brands plan, execute and measure their strategy. It can also help them identify the areas where they are lacking in their strategy. If a company has a lot of content geared towards the public's attention but only few pieces targeted at the middle of funnel, it needs to develop content for this stage.

Use tools like Ahrefs which examine the average time on a page and bounce rates of each piece to determine how targeted your content is. The more high these numbers are, the more efficient your content is.

It's important to keep up-to-date and relevant the content you create for the top of your funnel. This will ensure that your audience remains engaged and curious about your brand and the products or services it offers. The best way to do this is to create new content that is focused on specific keywords, addresses questions that are likely being sought by your target audience and provides the most up-to-date information about your business or product.

As your audience enters MOFU the audience will be looking for more details about your products or services, as well as solutions to their issues. It's important to build trust at this stage by giving honest reviews and demonstrating your worth.

The final phase of the funnel for content marketing is where your audience will make a purchase decision. This is achieved through gated content, which requires an email address or other form of registration to access. The purpose of this content is to turn the interest and awareness you've cultivated at the top of your content marketing strategy content funnel into qualified leads for your sales team to follow up on.

While customer retention falls mainly into the hands of your support and sales teams, Content Marketing Funnel you can have an impact on the journeys of your customers your brand by generating content that delights them throughout the entire content marketing funnel. This can include useful sources, behind-the-scenes details and special offers that only your audience has access to. If you can establish a relationship of trust with your audience, then they will become your most loyal advocates and help to reduce the time to sell.